Three Songs for Violoncello and Pipa was commissioned by the White House of the United States of America, specifically written for Yo-Yo Ma and Wu Man for a state dinner hosted by President and Mrs. Clinton in honor of the Chinese Premiere and Mrs. Zhu Rong Ji on April 8th, 1999.

The work is based on three popular folk melodies I heard while growing up in China. In Seasons, a folk song form the northwestern province of Qinghai, the text expresses the happiness of a young maiden for the arrival of each new season: spring, summer, autumn and winter. Little Cabbage, a Hebei (province near Beijing) folk song, is traditionally sung by daughters when visiting their mothers’ graves. It is sad and melancholic. Tibetan Dance is based on a well-known Tibetan folk dance melody.